Chapter 10: Counterattack
Surprise, shock, tension, and fear flashed across the faces of the nearly helpless magicians. They could not believe that the magic they had once wielded with such brilliance had suddenly failed. A few of them were utterly confused, while the lead magician realized immediately that there was only one explanation for this: there must be a more powerful magic practitioner hidden in the vicinity!
It was then that they realized how foolish it had been to stand unprepared in front of the soldiers, overconfident as they were. The price for such stupidity was their lives. Before the magicians could even form protective shields, two dark figures shot out from the ranks of the half-orc warriors. Knights wielding energy-laden spears sliced through the air with a eerie shriek. A faint black mist enveloped the two figures as the spears effortlessly shattered the shields created by the magic scrolls. Unprepared for such a deadly encounter, the magicians did not have any spells ready to withstand the attacks of the dark knights. When the spears pierced through their chests, the blood sprayed into the air, forming a beautiful rose pattern in a strange and glaring way. It was then that Baron Haranto, the commander of the troops, realized that his own magicians had been assassinated right before his eyes.
The deaths of his two companions bought time and opportunity for the chief magician of this campaign. The murderous intent and energy radiating from the two assassins nearly broke his heart. In a face-to-face close combat situation, the magician had no chance. Out of instinctive self-preservation, he cast the earthescape spell at lightning speed. In an attempt to merge with the ground as quickly as possible, he exhausted almost all his magic power in an instant. Perhaps the only explanation was that this was an act of escape, not a regular duel.
The magician who used earth element giants and hellish devouring earth spells disappeared in the blink of an eye. Sorenberg tried to locate him using his psychic senses, but it was clear that this man was not only a master of earth magic but also a highly resourceful survivor with an extreme desire to live. By the time Sorenberg’s senses pinpointed the assassin’s escape route and presence, the man had already vanished deep into the ground beneath the Homer soldiers. To find him would require eliminating all these thousands of soldiers, by which time the man would likely be far away.
The magi, who had never witnessed such bloody and terrifying scenes, could only watch in horror as their so-called strongmen turned into corpses. It was only when the gun-like shadow conjured in the hand of the figure wrapped tightly in black cloth swept across their companions’ throats once again that they realized the target was actually them, these magic practitioners! Scattering in all directions like panicked birds was utterly meaningless in the eyes of the two dark knights. It was pure delusion for these shallow magi to think they could escape before them. However, Baron Haranto’s knightly spear and the long swords of dozens of elite warriors stopped the two dark knights from advancing any further. Especially Baron Haranto’s emerging combat aura made the two dark knights itch with desire for battle. In their eyes, nobles were worthless; they cared nothing about the identity of their enemies—only killing brought them excitement. Haranto had to stop the assassins from proceeding. The killing blow dealt by those two magi left him heartbroken, as they were the grand duke’s treasures. If they died senselessly on the battlefield like this, even if he won this battle, he wouldn’t be able to report back to the grand duke. The only solution was to kill these two assassins and then shift the blame onto those careless magi. But the top priority was to eliminate these two assassins first. A pale cyan light seemed to emanate from within him—a sign that he was about to master neutral combat aura. Haranto’s knightly spear pursued the black shadow that was hunting the magi everywhere, while dozens of elite warriors formed a tight defensive circle to prevent those two shadows from wreaking havoc in their camp. These elite warriors were clearly specially trained; their resolute expressions, serious looks, and fierce killing intent proved they were the elite forces of Homer’s army. With every step they took, waves of swords and blades surged toward the two dark knights. Even Sorenberg and Vladkov, who had traversed the continent, had never encountered such a direct assault by a large group of elite soldiers. For a moment, they didn’t know how to respond.
To evade the pursuit of Baron Haranto’s knightly guns, Sorenberg immediately deployed protective dark magic. Dark mist swiftly enveloped his entire body, making him appear blurred. Vladkov, on the other hand, continuously channeled his inner strength to reach maximum speed. His acceleration magic created illusions of his figure, but the experienced elite warriors seemed unperturbed by this tactic. They simply advanced at their own pace, each step generating a wave of sword attacks like mercury spreading across the ground. The blinding illusions cast by the two Dark Knights had no effect on them. Although they hadn’t reached the combat energy stage, the combined power of those countless swords and blades forced even the two Dark Knights to hold back. Moreover, two highly skilled knights were closely pursuing them from behind.
Bamorli chased after the two shadows that moved swiftly through his camp like lightning. It was clear that these two shadows were far more skilled than he and Baron Haranto. They split and merged constantly, and with almost every attack, two or three elite warriors perished at their hands. These were the elites of his army, each capable of serving as a centurion or even higher. Yet, this line of defense composed of highly skilled warriors crumbled like paper in the face of those two shadows.
Sorenberg grew increasingly impatient. The sheer tenacity and fearless spirit of these damned warriors truly surprised him and Vladkov. But this didn’t stop them from launching coordinated attacks. However, relying on speed differences to kill their opponents was too slow. Although the two enemies behind them weren’t a serious threat, they never gave up, persistently pursuing them as if waiting to strike a final blow once they were exhausted. But such an idea was far too naive.
He exchanged a glance with Vladkov, who was passing by head-on. Almost simultaneously, the two of them soared into the air, exposing the two enemies closely pursuing them to each other. Sorenborg and Vladkov, having switched positions, struck at the same time. The tips of their knightly guns emitted a massive, dark glow, causing their opponents’ pupils to contract sharply. Haranto’s heart sank instantly; just from that blazing dark light on the tips of their knightly guns, he could tell how powerful their attacks were. But there was no time to turn back now—he could only grit his teeth and raise his knightly gun to withstand the attack.
At that moment, the two knightly guns collided. Like a kite with its string cut, the baron’s body spun and tumbled outward. Though he tried hard to maintain his balance in midair, the severe damage from the strike made it impossible. Fortunately, several soldiers rushed forward and caught the baron together. Yet the immense force, even through the baron’s body, caused the three soldiers who caught him to vomit blood and fall to the ground. But this at least saved the baron’s life.
The cunning Bamori realized the situation was bad as soon as the two dark knights switched positions and soared into the air. But due to the suddenness of it, he couldn’t avoid it. Bamori suppressed his fear and quickly weakened the power in his knightly gun, channeling his main energy into his own body. Wood-based protective magic and evasion techniques filled his body almost simultaneously. As his knightly gun was sent flying with a loud crash, Bamori’s body also drifted sideways, blood gushing from his mouth. But from the way he landed, it seemed he could at least keep his balance.
Vladkov had to admire his opponent’s cunning. This guy hadn’t left much power in his knightly gun—his full-force strike seemed to hit nothing. Although the sudden burst of combat energy still caused significant damage to the opponent, it wasn’t actual contact. Compared to fighting that arrogant guy Sorenborg, this guy might have appeared dark and gloomy on the surface, but Vladkov knew his vitality hadn’t been greatly damaged.
As the two Dark Knights launched a sudden attack, the magicians hidden among the orcish forces also began to unleash the magical spell they had prepared for a long time. To achieve the best results and defeat their enemies in one go, Komer and Rebril jointly activated the magic circle they had devised—Thunder Shock All Things. This lightning-based magic circle required not only immense magical power to activate but also a steady supply of elemental magic energy to sustain it. With their current abilities alone, neither Komer nor Rebril could complete this complex spell; the only solution was for them to work together.
In just a few seconds, dark clouds covered the entire sky, rolling like turbulent seas. Komer had already taken two stimulants to fully unleash his potential after drawing power from the magic crystals. Coupled with his deep understanding of the Black Crystal Token over the past few days and Rebril’s assistance in replenishing his magic energy and amplifying the spell’s effects through supporting magic, the large-scale integrated lightning spell, Thunder Shock All Things, finally erupted under their combined efforts.
Almost everyone stared in horror at the sky, filled with clouds that covered the sun and seemed to be closing in. Even some of the surviving magicians forgot they were in danger and gazed blankly at the sky. The rolling clouds eventually split open, revealing a giant foot as thick as an ancient tree emerging from them. Soon after, the figure of the Thunder God became faintly visible—his arms, thick as tree trunks, gleamed with dark light, adorned with beautiful silver rings that looked terrifying at that moment. The exquisite hammers in his hands emitted sparks of electricity. When the Thunder God’s distorted and ferocious face finally appeared at the top of the clouds, the spell Thunder Shock All Things was ready to be unleashed.
Molotov hammers the size of baskets kept crashing into each other, with thunderstorms and countless flashes of lightning falling like a meteor shower. Driven by Komer and Lebray, these attacks rained down relentlessly on Homer’s army, sending mud flying and corpses scattered everywhere. Although Homer’s warriors were trained in defensive magic, such unimaginably powerful magical attacks were like nightmares to them. Waves of lightning and electric shocks, coupled with overwhelming gusts of wind, struck Homer’s three attack groups without pause. With almost no cover, the soldiers futilely raised their shields, but these metal shields only attracted even stronger attacks. Soldiers fell one after another, their charred corpses emitting a foul smell. The ground was covered with large craters caused by lightning strikes, turning it into a hellish landscape. Homer’s soldiers could only hold on under the orders of their officers, relying on strict military discipline. Their only hope was that this wave of magical attacks wouldn’t last too long, allowing them to survive it.
Faced with such a decisive advantage, even the half-orc soldiers who were supposed to launch attacks according to the plan were stunned. Such terrifying destructive power far exceeded their comprehension. Although they had previously received various descriptions and even witnessed small-scale magical attacks, the immense power displayed by a large-scale magic array like “Thunder Shocking All Things” filled them with such fear that they didn’t dare take a step forward. Shrinking their necks and trembling, they could only hold their positions with their spears and shields—this was already the best they could do.
Although the orc soldiers were a bit slower in launching their attacks, the magical assault of “Thunder That Shakes All Things,” akin to a natural disaster, broke the fighting spirit of the three thousand Homerian soldiers. Despite their unwavering will and strict discipline, even the most resilient soldiers could not hold on under such an indescribable onslaught. When the most fierce blow of this massive spell struck the middle of the three attacking arrows, causing the ground within ten zhang to collapse, the Homerian army finally lost its resolve and began to flee. Once one soldier fled, it quickly turned into a full-scale rout. Only when they saw the Homerian soldiers fleeing in large numbers did the orc officers, as if waking from a dream, shout orders for their soldiers to charge forward and pursue them. The scene from the Battle of Banasha was almost repeated verbatim, except this time the victors were the orc forces, and the ones fleeing were the Homerian soldiers.
Standing quietly on a high hill and watching this scene, it was clear that there was no longer any suspense in this war. The completely shattered Homerian army had lost all fighting spirit, while the once timid orc soldiers suddenly turned into the fiercest beasts. Compared to the orcians’ physical abilities, human soldiers were far inferior in terms of stamina and speed. A major battle was essentially over even before the two armies came into direct contact. Such wars were extremely rare in the history of the continent, yet two had already taken place in Leon within a month.
Bamorli, who tried to flee, was immediately surrounded by two skeleton warriors controlled by the puppet mage Mihajlovic. Already badly injured, the knight Bamorli lost almost all his fighting courage facing the two skeletal warriors swinging swords. As a knight officer who had long led troops into battle, he knew little about this necromantic magic from the dark world. The almost perfect coordination of the skeleton warriors reduced Bamorli’s already weakened fighting strength to zero, and he was killed by the two warriors just over five hundred meters away from the battlefield. The orc soldiers who arrived later dared only to circle from a distance, facing the two skeleton warriors who couldn’t tell friend from foe. It wasn’t until the two skeletons suddenly disappeared that the orc soldiers dared to approach and capture the severely injured knight Bamorli alive.
In the Battle of Mando, out of three thousand elite Homerian soldiers, less than three hundred were captured alive; the remaining two thousand were killed either by magic on the spot or by the frenzied half-orc soldiers. What seemed to be a battle with no suspense indeed ended in a predictable manner, only with the roles of the original victors and losers reversed.
The Battle of Mando not only greatly boosted the morale of the mob forces but also made these half-orc mob soldiers, having experienced magic, even more confident. The mob forces in the east of Izmel, who had withdrawn out of concern for the unfavorable situation, immediately switched to counterattack after receiving support from the victorious mob forces in the south. Over thirty thousand mob soldiers surrounded Izmel completely. Without their magic users as a vital force and with their main army annihilated, their morale suffered greatly. More than two thousand Homerian soldiers, despite facing attacks ten times their number from the half-orc mob forces, held out for a full day before forcing the attackers to suffer over five thousand casualties before collapsing. Of the more than two thousand Homerian soldiers and a thousand noble mercenaries, only slightly over five hundred were captured; the rest were killed. This bloody and brutal battle became even more cruel because no magic users were involved, marking the first time the entire region of Leon fell.
The complete fall of Leon greatly stimulated the desires of the mob leaders. Several mob armies could now confidently hold a joint meeting for the first time in Izmel. Although they tried hard to invite Mahagumi, who was seen as the representative of the Caucasus, Mahagumi politely declined to attend at Komer’s instruction. The mob forces, blinded by victory, quickly decided to return to the north of Leon, aiming to liberate all slaves in the Leon region, and they put this plan into action soon after. Within two weeks, Banasha and Mere, which no longer had any armed forces, fell one after another. The mob forces, now numbering eighty thousand, surged north like a flood, attempting to cross the Nise River and advance on Fortress Bruce. However, the defenders of Fortress Bruce, supported by three thousand Homerian soldiers urgently dispatched from the Bosen Plains, were forced to burn the pontoon bridge leading to the south bank of the Nise River, turning the wide and fast-flowing Nise River into a natural barrier separating the Leon region from the entire Homerian region.